


Unchained Memories

by Leya



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Banter, Big Brother Gabriel, Brotherly Affection, Community: team_free_love, Hurt Castiel, Hurt Gabriel, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-06
Updated: 2013-02-06
Packaged: 2017-11-28 10:39:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/673466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leya/pseuds/Leya
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the secret lover exchange 2011 at  team_free_love as a gift for lynndyre. Prompt: angel-focused hurt/comfort (especially if Gabriel is worse off than Castiel and less likely to tell anyone so).</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unchained Memories

**Author's Note:**

> Unbeta'd.

The moment the door slammed shut behind two furious looking hunters Bobby knew that something must have gone spectacularly wrong.

Wordlessly Sam just walked past him, not even once bothering to look up. The young hunter made a beeline for the coffee-pot, hands trembling with what Bobby could only assume was barely hidden rage, and poured himself a big cup of coffee, quickly downing the hot liquid in one go. His brother followed just a few seconds later but instead of coffee he went straight to the beer.

For long moments a deep silence fell over the small room before Bobby finally had enough.

Hardened by numerous years of dealing with stubborn and infuriating members of the Winchester family the older hunter decided to ignore the angry faces and too tight clenched fists of his young friends and take the proverbial bull by the horns.

"What the hell happened?"

Sam just shrugged, unceremoniously plopping down onto the chair next to him. "Nothing."

"Doesn’t look like nothing to me, boy." Bobby stated matter-of-factly and gestured for Sam to continue. "Was there something wrong with the information I gave to you?"

"No."

The older hunter raised his eyebrows, clearly waiting for a more detailed explanation but Sam just muttered something inaudible and leaned back in his chair, obviously too exhausted to keep his eyes open any longer.

With his head resting against the back of his chair Bobby got a clear view at Sam’s bruised neck. It seemed as if someone – or more likely something – had tried to choke him. Slowly the pieces fell into place.

"It’s plain to see that something went thoroughly wrong on this hunt. Care to enlighten me?"

"This stupid, good for nothing archangel nearly got us killed, that’s what happened!" Dean choose this moment to join the conversation. Eyeing the streaks of dirt and blood covering his hands with barely hidden disgust the elder Winchester started rummaging through the cabinets, impatiently looking for something to clean himself with. "He turned my gun into a fucking toy !"

"Don’t tell me you went into a hunt with just one gun?" Bobby almost couldn’t believe it. After accepting the former trickster into their team they should have known something like this would happen eventually. It was hard to understand that the boys always seemed surprised when the archangel once again messed with them.

"I thought your Daddy taught you better."

Dean scowled at the older hunter but any further discussion was interrupted by the arrival of Castiel.

"Hello Dean." Castiel greeted his hunter solemnly, before he remembered that Dean wasn’t alone in the room. "Sam. Bobby."

"Hey, Cas." Although Dean was in a fairly bad mood he always found a smile for his angel.

Sam rolled his eyes in exasperation but wisely kept his mouth shut. The crush the little angel had on the elder Winchester was almost painful to watch. But in best Winchester tradition Dean managed to convert denial into an art form. Sometimes Sam barely resisted the temptation to lock them into a room together and leave them there until they finally came to their senses.

A movement to his right caught his attention and when he turned his head he found himself almost eye to eye with Gabriel. The archangel grinned knowingly and heaved himself onto the sink unit, deliberately ignoring the glare Bobby sent into his direction.

"Hey, guys. How you’re doing?"

It took Dean a few seconds to realise that he finally got the chance to confront the archangel with what he had done. He was right up in Gabriel’s personal space before the angel even registered what was happening.

"You!"

The former trickster looked distinctively innocent. "Me?"

"How dare you show your face after what you have done to us!"

"Whoa... hey, calm down, big boy!" Gabriel held up his hands in a placating gesture. "I’ve done nothing!"

Dean snarled viciously and only Castiel’s restraining hand on his arm kept him from punching the grinning angel right on the nose. "Nothing? You nearly get us killed and you call this nothing?!"

"What are you talking about?" Tilting his head questioningly to one side the archangel tried to gauge the mood of the young hunter. He quickly took in the dishevelled state of Dean’s hair and clothes and came to the conclusion that something serious must have happened.

"You look like crap, Dean-o. Come on, let me help you to get clean!"

Fingers already raised to snap Gabriel suddenly found his hand forcefully batted away. "What? I’m just trying to help!"

"Don’t you dare coming near me! I’m going to take a nice, hot shower and you are going to stay out of my way or so God help me I won’t be responsible for my actions!"

"Hey! Leave Dad out of this!" Gabriel was still grinning although his eyes had turned worried. He carefully slid off the sink, casually putting his hands into his pockets. "I don’t bring John into this, do I?"

Dean lunged forward but again Castiel held him back, placing himself between the irate hunter and his brother.

"Dean, please tell me what happened. Why are you so upset?"

"Ask your brother. I’m sure he’ll be more than happy to let you know all the exciting details." When both angels just exchanged confused looks the hunter’s eyes narrowed in anger. "Don’t you dare pretending that you don’t know what I’m talking about!"

"Honestly, I’ve got absolutely no clue here." The archangel pleadingly looked over to Sam but the younger hunter quickly averted his eyes, obviously choosing to keep himself out of the line of fire.

"Really?" Dean’s voice was dripping with poorly hidden sarcasm. "I can’t say that I’m surprised you’re denying everything. No-one can expect you to develop something comparable to a conscience all of a sudden!"

"Now you’re being unfair! I’ve done nothing wrong!"

"Dean, when Gabriel says that he doesn’t know then I’m sure..."

"No, Cas! Don’t. Just... don’t. I definitely don’t want to hear it." The hunter deliberately turned his back on the perplexed archangel. "This stupid brother of yours changed my weapon into a toy pistol! I’m sure the werewolf appreciated the flowers we shot at it!"

"Come on, Dean! It wasn’t..." Gabriel tried to explain but Dean just cut him short, still focussed on Castiel.

"Thanks to your brother Sam almost got seriously hurt because I wasn’t able to protect him from a freaking werewolf!"

"Now you’re exaggerating, don’t you think? I didn’t mean to endanger you guys." The archangel placed one hand on Dean’s shoulder but the hunter shrugged him off.

"Oh, really? Just like you didn’t mean to set Bobby’s library on fire because you wanted us to lighten up?"

"Well..."

"Do I have to remind you what you did last week to poor Sammy here?"

"That’s not fair! How could I have known that…"

"And I think it also had been an accident that our weapons only shot flowers so we had to turn tail and run?! Good job, by the way. Thanks to you the werewolf now has the chance to continue with his killings." For a short moment it seemed as if tears were shimmering in the archangel’s eyes but Dean quickly dismissed it as imagination.

"It was a joke! You said you would stay here for a while. You said no hunts! I thought you would use your guns for a training round with Cassie. By the way, I’ve already changed them back."

"Thanks a fucking heap but that’s so not the point!" Dean was almost yelling by now, his face turning an interesting shade of red.

Surprised Gabriel backed off.

"Dean..." Again Castiel tried to intervene, but the hunter was in full swing, clearly too far gone to listen.

"Our hunts are off limits!" Dean told Gabriel in a stern voice and prodded the archangel’s chest with his index finger. "I don’t care about your intentions. You endangered us with your reckless and childish behaviour. Learn to take responsibility before one of your stupid jokes ends with one of us getting killed. We don’t need a trickster in our team, we need an archangel to help us fighting Lucifer. When you’re not able to fulfil this role than you’re absolutely useless to us!"

When Dean finally stopped his ranting Gabriel looked shell-shocked. His eyes uncertainly flickered from the hard and unforgiving hunter in front of him towards Sam but the younger Winchester still carefully avoided eye-contact by staring at the yellow striped tablecloth.

A hurt little sound escaped the archangel’s lips and in a rustle of wings he was gone. After throwing an accusing glance in Dean’s direction Castiel wordlessly took off as well.

"No, Cas! Please wait! I didn’t mean..." Abruptly coming to his senses the elder Winchester desperately tried to take the sting out of his words but the angel was already gone.

Bobby cleared his throat. "Idjit."

Dean just buried his head in his hands.

 

\+ + +

 

Gabriel was sitting at a lake not far from Bobby’s house with his knees hugged to his chest, chin resting on his folded arms.

The cool night air soothed his frayed nerves and for a moment the archangel just sat there, staring forlornly at the small sparks of light dancing across the waves lapping at the shore.

Never before had he felt so alone.

Had someone told him just a few months ago that one day two humans and one rebellious angel would tear down all the arrogant lies and righteous self-delusions he deceived himself with for more than a millennium now – he just would have laughed.

But now he couldn’t ignore the truth any longer, couldn’t ignore the emptiness burning deep inside his grace until his desire to finally belong became nearly overwhelming.

All he ever wanted was a chance to have a family again – something he so desperately missed since Lucifer’s betrayal ripped heaven and the remaining archangels apart – but he had given up hope so long ago he barely even remembered how it had been.

And then he had seen them. All three of them together, in just another of those crappy motel rooms. Sam and Dean had been cleaning their weapons while Castiel stood by closely, curiously watching them.

Neither of them spoke but the sheer harmony palpable between them made words unnecessary. It was obvious how close they were... and he just wanted to be a part of this, just once he wanted to experience this camaraderie the other three shared but whatever he tried it always went wrong.

He intended to lighten the mood and got thrown out of the house because he accidentally set Bobby’s library on fire. It didn’t matter that he repaired it in a heartbeat – the older hunter still was annoyed as hell and forbade him to come near his books again.

He decided to bring Sam something to eat while the young hunter researched their latest hunt on the internet, so engrossed in what he was reading that he never paid any attention to his surroundings, and got yelled at because he chose a salad full of apricots Sam absent-mindedly ate – never knowing that the hunter was allergic to them.

The latest débâcle with the weapons was just another impressive example for his stupidity, painfully reminding him of the mistakes he made.

Why couldn’t he do something right just once?

Gabriel knew that he was an intruder in this tight band of chosen family and brothers, merely tolerated because having an archangel on their side was a real plus but they didn’t trust him. Not really. Well, Castiel did. But this was a completely different matter. His brother still had enough of his grace left to reach out for Gabriel and just see. The Winchester’s didn’t have this ability and after all the crap he put them through it wasn’t as if Gabriel couldn’t understand their reservations.

But it hurt nonetheless.

What would he give to be accepted just because someone enjoyed him being around and not because his abilities were an useful asset?

The archangel smiled sadly and shifted into a slightly more comfortable position. It wasn’t as if he wasn’t used to always being the one standing on the outside looking in.

Even in heaven his brothers had denied him. After Lucifer was gone Michael had always been caught up in his own little world of golden memories and broken dreams while Raphael buried himself in the task of perfecting his healing abilities.

Instead of being the youngest archangel, spoiled by his older brothers, Gabriel suddenly had been the annoying little messenger no-one wanted around. He wasn’t able to deal with those hollow ghosts that once had been the ones he looked up to, the ones he adored and idolised with all his heart. He needed his family, needed the love of his brothers but much as he tried to please them all his attempts were thrown back in his face.

And now it was heaven all over again because he just had to ruin it all by attempting to achieve something he wasn’t meant for.

If nothing else heaven should have taught him long ago that no-one wanted him around for a longer period of time.

Gabriel closed the eyes and almost instantly Dean’s face appeared in his inner vision. So much like Michael and yet so different.

Just like the oldest archangel he followed his father’s orders without questioning them but in contrast to Michael the elder Winchester had outgrown his desperate need to please his father. No, Dean took care of his younger brother, always placing Sam’s welfare above his own needs. Even if it meant to ignore his father’s wishes in the process. Dean really was an older brother to be proud of and look up to.

Gabriel hid his face in his arms but there was no way to bar the painful truth.

He was so desperately longing for a home, for a family to return to, that he would do almost everything to achieve this goal but whatever he tried so far had turned out to be futile. And so he had created the carefree, sometimes a little overbearing mask of the Trickster, a face he could hide his fears and insecurities behind, protecting him from getting hurt over and over again.

Until now.

Just like that he was back to square one and it was even worse than before because now he couldn’t even hide from himself any longer how incredible pathetic he was.

Deluding himself by pretending to be a trickster because it was a fun thing to do and a perfect cover to divert his siblings, he never allowed himself to see that despite all his efforts to dissociate himself from heaven he had ended up doing exactly what his Father always intended him to do – fulfilling his role as the Angel of Judgement by using the persona of a trickster to dish out just deserts to those deserving it.

Hundreds of years he had been living a lie and it had taken the Winchesters and his youngest brother to realise it.

The sound of wings interrupted his train of thought, announcing the arrival of his brother.

"Gabriel."

"What do you want, Castiel?" Gabriel refused to turn around, refused to acknowledge the disappointment and disgust he was surely would find in his brother’s eyes.

"Why did you do that, brother?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why don’t you take anything seriously?" Castiel asked softly and Gabriel just shrugged, idly fiddling with his hands.

"I am serious, bro."

"No, you’re not. Most of the times you’re still behaving like a trickster. That’s not you, Gabriel. Why can’t you be more..." The younger angel trailed off, clearly reconsidering his next words. "Please try to be a little more serious. The Winchester’s still haven’t forgotten what you have done to them and your antics sometimes make it hard for me to..."

"Shut up, Cas! Whatever you want to say suck it up and leave me alone!" Golden eyes blazing in barely hidden anger, Gabriel whirled around. One of his hands came up to grab Castiel’s collar, violently shaking the startled angel.

"I’m trying, Cas! I try so hard, so damn hard each fucking day, and all I get is ‘Gabriel, clean this up’, ‘Gabriel, could you just keep your mouth shut?’, ‘Gabriel, go away! You’re so fucking damn useless!’ Can you even imagine how it is to just want ... and to be denied over and over again?!"

Gabriel’s mind was racing, myriads of different emotions sending him reeling into a terrible mix of pain and humiliation and fear. It was just too much. After all what happened between him and Dean hearing his little brother repeating the same words the hunter had said to him was more than Gabriel could take. With one last shove he sent the other angel stumbling back.

Seconds later the archangel curled up into himself, three sets of honey and amber coloured wings bursting free from his back. Within seconds his shivering body vanished behind a protective wall of golden feathers, effectively blocking his brother from touching him.

"Gabriel, please. Look at me."

So soft, so forgiving. The archangel swallowed hard and closed his eyes, drowning in the knowledge that he was absolutely unlovable and too broken to ever find someone accepting him.

Gentle hands suddenly touched his wings, gently worming their way through the feathers, until they reached his head. The thin tendrils of his brother’s grace reached out for him and there was no lying, no pretending and with a suffocated sob Gabriel turned around and hugged his brother tightly.

"Shh... I know, I know..." The smile in Castiel’s voice was evident and his hands never faltered while he continued to stroke his brother’s hair. Carefully, as if sudden movements would startle an already scared animal, his hands wandered lower, brushing over the spot on Gabriel’s back where his wings connected with his vessel.

The archangel sighed and complied to the unspoken request by fanning out his wings to give Castiel better access.

The younger angel smiled fondly at this complete and utter display of trust, while carefully continuing to groom his brother’s impressive wings. Golden and amber, speckled with a beautiful shade of red, bringing back memories of love and warmth and home and for a moment Castiel had to fight against the tears burning in his vessels eyes. He missed heaven, missed it so much that having one of his brothers with him soothed his troubled grace more than he ever imagined possible.

"You are not alone, Gabriel. You’ll never be alone again", Castiel promised solemnly, still shaken from all the pain and loneliness he could feel inside his brother. He had known that Gabriel’s reasons for leaving heaven weren’t all about the constant fighting between their brothers. Gabriel had left because he thought no-one cared – and what made matters worse in Castiel’s opinion was that the archangel had been right. Neither of their brother’s cared enough to seriously search for him or they would have found him eventually – regardless of his attempts to hide.

To roam the earth for thousands of years and to know that he was completely on his own – it was pure torture. Angels weren’t meant to be alone and Castiel couldn’t even begin to fathom how much Gabriel had suffered.

‘Never again’, Castiel silently promised to himself. Now all he had to do was to help the Winchesters accepting Gabriel into their family like they had accepted Castiel. 

Gabriel chuckled softly, apparently reading his younger siblings mind. Snuggling closer he buried his face in Castiel’s chest, contently inhaling his scent. "Good luck with that one. You know how stubborn those damn Winchesters are."

The younger angel didn’t even bother to answer. Instead he wordlessly coaxed Gabriel to look up, solemn blue eyes meeting astonished golden ones, and then he took his brother’s face in both hands and kissed him gently.

The kiss was everything Gabriel imagined it to be and more. It was a promise to be there, the promise to never leave his side and accept him the way he was – even though jaded and nearly broken beyond repair. It spoke of care and understanding and warmth and for the first time in almost a millennia Gabriel knew that there still was hope for him.

Sighing in contentment he let his forehead fall against his brother’s chest again.

The attack came out of nowhere.

Castiel abruptly found himself jerked back by an invisible force, coiled tightly around his chest and waist. Seconds later he was flung into the lake, water closing over his shocked face, cutting off his pitiful cry for help before Gabriel even realised what was happening.

"No!"

Gabriel threw himself forward, intent on grabbing hold of his brother but the younger angel was already gone.

Without thinking twice the archangel followed his brother into the lake.

 

\+ + +

 

"We should have followed them."

Sam gazed up from his book, silently taking in the agitated look on his brother’s face. Dean flashed him an apologetic smile and gestured for him to continue reading. The younger hunter thoughtfully studied him for a moment before he decided to answer.

"I know you’re regretting what you’ve said but there is no way to tell where they’ve gone. They could be at the other side of the earth by now."

Why had Sam to be so damn logical? Dean just shrugged in response, knowing all too well that his brother most probably was right. But that didn’t mean he had to like it.

Since his argument with the archangel the hunter felt like shit. He knew he overshot the mark but he had been so worried about his little brother getting hurt without him being able to help, the memory of Cold Oak suddenly so very present in his mind, and when he saw Gabriel something inside of him just snapped.

"I’m sure Cas will be able to bring him back. Then you get your chance to apologize." Sam stated out of the blue and although Dean knew his brother just tried to cheer him up by teasing him with the prospect of a possible chick-flick moment looming in the near future, the older hunter barely managed a smile.

Of course Dean was well aware that Castiel and especially Gabriel were more than capable to take care of themselves but still – not to know their angels whereabouts worried him. The hunter would never say so out loud but he considered both angels as family. After getting over his initial shock that the trickster actually was an archangel Dean slowly started to like their former nemesis. Especially since he saw how protective Gabriel got whenever Castiel was concerned. Being an older brother himself this was something Dean could definitely relate to.

"Maybe we should..." Sam interrupted himself, staring incredulously at the small figure appearing out of thin air in the middle of Bobby’s living-room.

"The hell...?" Dean was on his feet before his brain caught up with his actions, hands already stretched out to capture the unconscious form of his angel out of Gabriel’s trembling arms.

Sam quickly joined Dean, helping him to carry the younger angel towards the couch.

"What the hell happened?"

"We had an encounter with a water demon." Gabriel watched them wearily, golden eyes following their every move until they reached the couch, carefully placing Castiel on the cushions. The younger angel shivered pitifully. "He had been trapped in the water for nearly half an hour. I need to check on the possible damage the demon might have done to him. But first of all we need to keep him warm."

"I’ll get some blankets." Sam was already halfway across the room before Gabriel even finished his sentence. The archangel threw a quick glance in Dean’s direction but the hunter was completely focussed on Castiel.

Thankfully neither had caught on the fact that he didn’t snap the blankets up himself Gabriel used the chance and quickly checked the deep gash one of the the demon’s claws had ripped into his skin. The wound looked red and already inflamed, stretching from the left side of his ribcage halfway across his abdomen. It was an ugly sight, reminding Gabriel once more that he was playing with fire but he couldn’t risk to give in to the signals his grace was sending through his body – not when he didn’t know how severely injured Castiel was. His little brother came first. There would always be time to take care of himself later.

Ignoring the throbbing pain that showed him more than anything that he was running out of time before his grace forced him into a healing sleep, Gabriel walked over to the couch and knelt down beside his brother. "I need your help, Winchester."

"What do I need to do?" Not the slightest bit of hesitation and Gabriel silently nodded his approval. Now Dean just needed to admit his feelings for Castiel and hunter and angel would finally have a chance of their own version of happily ever after.

"Take his hand and whatever happens, don’t let go. When he raised you from perdition he marked you with a little bit of his grace. Your touch will help him to stay calm when I’m..." The archangel thoughtfully gnawed on his bottom lip, debating with himself what to tell the hunter before finally settling for the truth. "Look, Dean. I won’t lie to you. This might by painful for him and I need you to be his anchor. Can you do that?"

"Of course."

"Fine. Just concentrate on your love for him and we’re good!" Gabriel answered cheerfully, causing Dean to sputter in indignation.

"Love? I don’t..."

"Oh, please! Everyone knows that you’re head over heels for him. Just like he’s in love with you since the very first moment he laid his eyes on you."

For a long moment Dean just stared, an undefinable look in his expressive green eyes. Then he returned his attention to Castiel, firmly taking the angel’s hand in his own.

"Here is a blanket." Sam reappeared on his brother side, all but throwing the thick fabric over Castiel’s still shivering form. Gabriel wasn’t sure how much the younger hunter had heard but there was no time to wonder over such a minor detail.

Taking care of Castiel was all that mattered right now.

Gabriel closed his eyes, concentrating on focussing his grace, before he stretched out his hands.

Heating up in golden light Gabriel’s fingers started to glow, slowly spreading small slivers of his grace over Castiel’s whole body. Suddenly the grip Cas had on Dean’s hand tightened almost unbearably but the hunter held on, not even flinching when he heard his bones cracking.

The hunter cast a short look in Gabriel’s direction but the archangel was completely lost to the world, hands drawing foreign patterns into the air, deliberately weaving his brother’s whole body into an impenetrable blanket of golden light.

Castiel moaned in pain and Dean’s attention immediately snapped back to his angel. He unconsciously strengthened his grip, all his thoughts concentrating on how much Cas meant to him.

How could he have been so blind?

His mind was still stuck on what Gabriel had said to him. Dean had always considered himself to be straight but with Cas it was different. Somehow, without him noticing, the little angel had wormed his way into the hunter’s heart.

"Close your eyes!"

The sharp warning almost came too late. A blinding flash of light erupted from Castiel’s body, leaving a trail of dark spots dancing across Dean’s closed eyelids.

"He’ll be fine now."

The archangel sounded tired. Dean shook his head to clear his vision and stared in shock at the sight of an archangel that clearly was at the end of his tether. There were unusual dark rings under Gabriel’s eyes and when he slowly got to his feet he almost instantly started to sway.

Alarmed Sam made an attempt to hold him upright but before Gabriel could tell him that there was no need to worry the world abruptly tilted sideways and everything went black.

When he regained consciousness he was laying on a bed, barely able to keep his eyes open. Castiel was at his side, gently stroking his fingers through the archangel’s dishevelled hair.

"What happened?"

"You fainted." Castiel told him plainly, his blue eyes incredibly sad. "I’m so sorry, brother. I thought... I didn’t know... I didn’t sense it... I’m so sorry..."

"Don’t worry, Cassie. I didn’t sense it either and I really should have..." Gabriel’s eyes drifted close again, the soothing rhythm of Castiel’s fingers stroking his hair accompanying him in his sleep.

The next time Gabriel woke up, Dean was sitting in Castiel’s place, a serious look on his face.

"You are a fool."

Almost instinctively Gabriel tried to ward off the unexpected worry clearly audible in the hunter’s voice with a flippant response. "I love you too, snookums."

"You could have died!"

Gabriel rolled his eyes and attempted to answer but Dean talked right over him.

"Why didn’t you tell us that you were wounded?!"

"It didn’t matter."

"Yeah? Whatever gives you this idea? You should have told us that one little healing would be too much for you."

"It wasn’t!" Gabriel protested indignantly and tried to sit up – just to fall back into the cushions with a grimace.

"It is when you are wounded." Dean stated angrily and fixed the archangel with a cold stare. "You should have told us."

The archangel struggled to sit up again. This time the hunter helped him by steadying him long enough until his head stopped spinning.

"I thought you would be glad to get rid of me... Ow!"

Gabriel glared at the elder Winchester who just cuffed him upside the head. "You really are a fool, do you know that? Just because I have been a little bit too harsh with you doesn’t mean that I want to see you hurt."

The golden eyes of the archangel widened in mock surprise. "Are you worried about me?"

"What? Hell, no!"

Gabriel’s lips twitched in amusement but before he could tease Dean any further for his display of emotions Sam joined them.

"How are you feeling?" The younger hunter smiled down at the archangel, an expression of genuine concern in his hazel eyes. "You were out for almost three days. We were starting to worry but Cas told us that falling into a healing sleep is perfectly normal for a wounded angel."

Sam straightened himself and Gabriel caught sight of the still dark bruise on the hunter’s neck. Ashamed of his previous behaviour the archangel tried to find the right words to tell Sam how much he regretted his actions but one look into the hunter’s eyes made the words die on his lips...

...and suddenly Gabriel understood. Understood the absolution Dean already gave to him, understood the forgiveness Sam offered and for the first time in centuries the archangel felt whole again.

Not used to the small spark of happiness all of a sudden fluttering deep in his chest Gabriel quickly masked his feelings by changing the subject.

"I’m fine, Sasquatch. Where’s Cas?"

"I’m here." Still a little wobbly on his feet the younger angel made his way over to his brother, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

Gabriel eyed him critically. "Are you alright?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "Dude, you’re almost as bad as Dean. Cas is fine. In contrast to you. Take care of yourself and concentrate on getting better."

"Well, excuse me when I’m worried about my little brother! By angelic standards he’s barely grown-up."

The younger hunter scoffed. "Just because he’s younger than you doesn’t mean Cas can’t take care of himself."

"Well, yeah. And we all have seen how good that works..." Dean muttered under his breath. Sam narrowed his eyes at him.

"You’re one to talk. I would keep my mouth shut if I were you. Or do I have to remind you of some of the brighter ideas you had over the years?"

"I don’t know what you’re talking about."

Castiel’s gaze wandered from Sam to Dean and back, before he finally settled on Gabriel. Something obviously bothered the younger angel.

"There’s something I still don’t understand, brother. Why didn’t you just force the demon to leave the water? You even could have snapped away the whole lake. Why following me inside?"

Gabriel suddenly looked embarrassed.

"I..." The archangel trailed off, the rest of his answer nothing but an indistinctive murmur.

"Come again?" Dean curiously leaned forward.

"I said I panicked!" Gabriel defiantly crossed his arms in front of his chest, face still unusually red.

Sam couldn’t resist. Shaking his head in mock frustration, he stated: "And another victim of the overprotective-older-brother-disease."

Gabriel scowled at the younger Winchester but winced immediately after. "Ow. Don’t make me laugh, Winchester. It hurts."

"Serves you right." Dean was still not over the fact that the archangel had been stupid enough to think no-one would miss him. "We should leave you to rest now. I need you back on your feet so you can help me to keep our little brothers from hurting themselves."

"Actually you and Gabriel are the little ones. You’re both shorter than Sam or me." Castiel stated matter-of-factly but the mischievous gleam in his eyes gave him away.

Sam doubled over laughing after seeing the indignant faces of their older siblings.

“Obviously it's a genetic fact for older brother's to be the short ones." He wheezed out, nearly choking with glee.

The room erupted with laughter and in the library Bobby stopped for a moment in his research, smiling at the happiness drifting down the stairs, a happiness that reminded him of all the wonderful times he and his wife had spent together in this house. After a while the laughter died down and Bobby returned to his reading, content in the knowledge that his boys were safe.

END


End file.
